Alright, I am going to bite the bullet and go ahead and start putting together a tool kit for my AR and my other firearms. What needs to be in it? What tools? What parts for XDs, 1911, and AR should be in there at a minamum? What's nice to have? What do I need to ensure that the weapons stay running for awhile if I have to wait on shipping? What's in YOUR bag :smile:

May 23rd, 2008, 11:07 AM

HotGuns

a 3/16 and a 1/4 pin punch.
a bench block
a small brass hammer
a brass punch for drifting sights
a small set of screw drivers
a small set of allen wrenchs
a hard plastic faced hammer
a cleaning kit
a 3 peice cleaning rod to knock cases out of the AR when they get stuck
3 and 4 pronged sight tools for the AR
a small cleaning kit...at least a bore snake
a can of lube...Remoil or some equivalent
a 1/4 " dia brass rod about 10 -12 inches long

small gun parts are not included in this basic kit.

The above can be placed in a small compartmented clear plastic tackel box that can be purchased at Walmart for cheap and placed in you gear bag when you go to the range.

I bring this to the CHL classes that are taught at our private range. You can not imagine how many gun malfunctions have been fixed with that kit in the last 15 years.

May 23rd, 2008, 01:43 PM

Rob72

HG is right, as far as a straight tool box. But to keep your weapon(s) running:

1-2 complete sets of replacement springs
1-2 of any pins
1-2 of all high wear parts (hammer, disconnector, firing pin, gas-key for your AR.)
Spare sights
Spare barrels are nice, but not a necessity.

May 23rd, 2008, 03:23 PM

Paladin132

I meant all of that as well, sorry if that didn't get through originally. Tools and parts!

May 23rd, 2008, 09:45 PM

Ram Rod

I think HotGuns covered it pretty well. Whatever tools I lack in my range bag are in my truck tool box, and the truck goes with me to the range so I'm never at the range without tools. I've actually used my tools more to help others than for myself. Bore snake for the specific caliber is a must--I've dislodged stuck cases dropping it down from the muzzle end and tapping them out. I saw a guy use a coat hanger one time, ran it in from muzzle end to dislodge a stuck case----gives me shivers thinking about doing something like that. It was a rusty coat hanger too! I didn't realize what was going on until it was already too late.

May 23rd, 2008, 10:01 PM

Ridgeline

Rusty coat hangers.....yeckkkkkkk. Ask Reborn about dislodging a round that was inserted, jammed, loaded, stuck in the barrel backwards. Yep live primer end up, I hid behind my truck while he tapped it out with a wooden dow rod. And No, it wasn't his or mine, belonged to a lady shooting next to us. He asked her just where in the gun she felt the round would actualy spin around the right direction, as well as all the others in the mag.

So wooden dow rods for sure... for the lady next to us, you never know. Oh yeah, as I recall only 3 lbs of pressure, BOOM!!!

May 24th, 2008, 02:28 AM

Zach S

In general:
Lube, boresnake, sharpie, gerber multi tool. A set of assorted bits (torx, allen, flathead, phillips, etc) and a driver. You can pick up a set just about anywhere that sells tools for a few bucks. Wal-Mart used to sell a Pacmayer(sp?) set that worked well, dont know if they still do. A 1/8 punch works well enough for a lot of things that need a punch, IIRC there was enough room for it in the Pacmayer(sp?) box of bits. I buy punches as I need them. So far I have a 1/8 and 3/32. I got the 3/32 to change a bolt catch in my AR, so the 1/8 has done nicely so far. A points file come in handy, as well as a mill file. I grind one of the thin flats on my mill file smooth. I also have feeler gauges and a set of calipers, and while I've used them for gun stuff, thats not what I got them for. I didnt see anyone mention cleaning brushes.

AR15:
An armorer's wrench is a good idea, however if you have a collapsable stock you at least need a telestock wrench if your castle nut isnt staked. Its flat, so it should fit in the box o bits. If your take down pin is a bear to get out, a keyring punch helps a lot. A spare bolt isn't a bad idea, neither are broken shell extractors. I have both and havent used either. But they're there JIC. Several vendors offer "feild repair kits" which is mainly comprised of springs and detents that are commonly lost when you take AR15 apart or put it together.

Hate to sound picky, but it would be a four or five prong sight tool. The one I have works witht he A2 front post and A1 rear sight, but all of my front posts are A2s and all of my rear sights are A1s. Outside of Model 1 Sales, I dont see many A1 front posts. Keep this in something, dont just throw it in the box. The posts that push the detents are easily bent and/or broken.

1911:
Extra MSH pin. Yep, thats it, that's all I carry in the range bag. Since it needs punched out it gets lost easier than the sear pin or hammerpin. The 1/8 punch will push the MSH pin out, and the Pacmayer(sp?) bit set will handle the gripscrews and mag catch screw. I also keep an extra recoil spring or two on hand. I keep extra gripscrews and mag button screws on hand because I hate the pretty allen head screws that so many companies are using. Thats jsut personal preference though.